Broadband News

New EU legislation could derail Government piracy plans

Tuesday, 10 November 2009

By Garnet Roach garnet@consumerchoices.co.uk

A new EU agreement on telecoms regulation may make it almost impossible for the Government and content providers to force ISPs to disconnect customers suspected of illegal downloading, according to TalkTalk Broadband (www.TalkTalk.co.uk).

The EU agreement, which could come into force early next year, states that restricting a user’s internet access may only be imposed “with due respect for the principle of presumption of innocence and the right to privacy“, and as the result of “a prior, fair and impartial procedure”.

This means that the Government’s proposed plans to cut illegal downloaders from the net – presuming them guilty until proven innocent – may have to be scrapped.

Andrew Heaney, director of strategy and regulation at TalkTalk, said: “These European rules have now put into legal language what fair-minded people instinctively knew was right and just.

“No one should be disconnected from the internet unless it is established whether they broke the law through an impartial legal process starting with a presumption of innocence. The accuser has to prove guilt and if guilt is established then any penalty must be tailored to fit the individual circumstances.

“The need for a fair process is critical because the evidence that rightsholders use can only identify the broadband connection not the individual filesharer. This means that millions of account holders are at risk of being wrongly punished due, for instance, to unauthorised wi-fi hijackers using their connections.

“Although the new rules are not yet UK law, we call on the government to respect the spirit of what is intended and to drop its draconian plans to disconnect users without a proper judicial process.”

TalkTalk has been a consistent critic of the Government’s plans, which were announced earlier this year. It set up a campaign against the proposed measures – www.Donotdisconnect.us – and has so far gathered 1,615 signatures on its Number 10 petition.

Scott Fairbairn, a specialist in telecoms and intellectual property law at CMS Cameron McKenna, said: "The recently agreed wording in the draft EU Telecoms Package is clear. Rights holders cannot act as judge and jury in these matters.

“They cannot simply instruct ISPs to disconnect their customers or restrict their internet connections. In no way can that be considered to be a 'fair and impartial' procedure.”

Michael Phillips, Broadbandchoices.co.uk product director, added: “Talktalk is not only criticising the Government’s plans, it is also offering alternative options to tempt illegal downloaders away from peer to peer networks.

“It will soon be launching a series of parental controls that will allow account holders to restrict access to the kind of site users visit, and Tiscali Broadband (www.Tiscali.co.uk), which is owned by TalkTalk, launched a music download service last week that offers single tracks from just 42p.”

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